Public Hearing Wednesday for Fire Station Projects, WWTP Upgrades

Citizen Petition in Opposition to Town Plan

By Patrick Cronin

Hampton Union, Tuesday, January 11, 2011

[The following article is courtesy of the Hampton Union and Seacoast Online.]

Courtesy illustration Drawing of the proposed $4 million upgrade to the Winnacunnet Road fire station.

Courtesy illustration Drawing of the proposed $3 million fire sub-station at Hampton Beach.

HAMPTON -- There will be a public hearing Wednesday on four proposed bond articles that will go before voters at the annual Town Meeting in March including a petition one to construct a new fire station at the beach at a price tag of $3.7 million.

The hearing to receive public comment on the possible issuance of the bonds will take place at 7 p.m. in the selectmen's meeting room at the Town Offices.

A petition article filed by Skip Windemiller and 25 registered voters was filed last week and is in direct opposition to the bond article sponsored by selectmen and supported by the fire chief.

The selectmen-sponsored article is for $7.5 million and calls for the construction of a new substation at Hampton Beach and to convert the Winnacunnet Road facility into the new headquarters.

The petition warrant article was filed as a less costly alternative.

Fire Chief Chris Silver said he is opposed to the petition article and hopes voters support the $7.5 million plan.

"I will not support this petition because it destroys the credibility of the plan we put forth," he said.

Silver said the plan has always been the two-station proposal.

The goal of upgrading the Winnacunnet station is to turn it into the new headquarters by relocating the chief and administrative officers there.

The new addition — which would keep approximately 60 percent of the existing building — would cost roughly $4 million.

The new substation would be built on precinct land off Brown Avenue and cost $3 million.

"The petition warrant intends to construct a fire station with no work done at the Winnacunnet site," Silver said. "The number is arbitrary and I see no basis for how they arrived at it."

It appears petitioners of the article added funding into the article to incorporate retaining the administration offices at the beach.